AFC says its leader was invited urgently to State House by President and told of GECOM decision

The AFC today said that its Leader Raphael Trotman was invited to an urgent meeting at State House on October 19th at which he was informed by President David Granger of his decision to appoint retired Justice James Patterson as Chairman of GECOM.

The AFC statement came following ongoing questions about Trotman’s role at the meeting.

A statement by the AFC follows:

AFC slam Jagdeo for peddling cheap political mischief

The Alliance For Change notes the cheap political mischief being peddled by Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo and his surrogates with regard to the party’s involvement in the appointment of the GECOM Chairman. The party reiterates that it played no part in the selection process.

Party Leader Raphael Trotman was invited to an urgent meeting at State House by His Excellency President David Granger on the evening of October 19th, 2017. At the meeting President Granger informed Mr. Trotman of his decision with regard to the appointment of Justice James Patterson as GECOM Chairman. The meeting concluded and Mr. Trotman departed.

Justice Patterson was sworn in later that evening.

Mr. Trotman subsequently informed the party’s executive by email of the President Granger’s decision.

Following is the substantive excerpt from the email:

“Dear All,

I arrived at State House this evening and was shown a letter by the President, which was addressed to Mr. Jagdeo. In essence, the President’s letter stated that he has rejected the 3rd list and has considered the ruling of the CJ, and it is his opinion, that he is constitutionally empowered to name a person to the Chairmanship. Further, he has named Justice (ret’d) James Patterson to be the GECOM Chairman.

Mr. Jagdeo and team (Anil Nandlall and Irfaan Ali) came at 6 pm for the meeting and were informed of the above and then handed letters to this effect. Mr. Jagdeo challenged the President’s rejection of the list and his right to unilaterally name a person. His basis was that it is unconstitutional in addition to being an act of bad faith. He (Jagdeo) also stated that he will not recognise Justice Patterson as being impartial and will challenge the appointment.

This is my brief report and I have attached a copy of the letter in three parts.”

This clearly settles the matter of the AFC’s involvement in the selection process.

Mr. Jagdeo appears to be deeply disturbed by the party’s condemnation of his reckless and unpatriotic threats of non-cooperation and civil disobedience and that the party’s publicly stated position is that it would have held him accountable for the consequences of any civil unrest which might have ensued from such a reckless stance. Mr. Jagdeo’s threats turned out to be nothing but empty bluster having been rejected by the people of Guyana, including his own supporters.

The AFC is certain that its strong public condemnation of Mr. Jagdeo alerted the nation to his sinister motives and played a not insignificant role in derailing his reckless plans. Mr. Jagdeo appears to now be on an intensified campaign of vendetta and revenge against the AFC as a result of the party’s thwarting of his plans for civil disobedience and unrest.

The AFC reiterates that it will hold GECOM to the highest standards of electoral integrity and will stridently challenge any threats to the preservation of our democracy.